When the Hustle Becomes a Struggle

Lagos is a city of paradoxes. It’s where billion-dollar fintechs rise beside flooded slums, where talent meets traffic, and dreams jostle with dysfunction. It's Africa’s most populous city and arguably its loudest symbol of ambition. Yet in 2025, Visual Capitalist, drawing on data from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), ranked Lagos the 6th least livable city in the world.

This ranking isn’t just symbolic. It’s a wake-up call.

The global study assessed 173 cities across five key categories — stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. And while cities like Damascus and Tripoli remained at the bottom due to ongoing conflict, Lagos joined them not because of war, but because of neglect, inequality, and chronic urban mismanagement.

The Image That Says It All

Photo Credit: Visual Capitalist

The viral image created by Visual Capitalist is visually direct and emotionally jarring. Set against a burnt orange backdrop, it pinpoints the top 10 least livable cities in 2025, each represented with real photos showing war, chaos, overcrowding, or environmental decay.

Here’s the global bottom 10:

1. Damascus, Syria

2. Tripoli, Libya

3. Dhaka, Bangladesh

4. Karachi, Pakistan

5. Algiers, Algeria

6. Lagos, Nigeria

7. Harare, Zimbabwe

8. Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

9. Kyiv, Ukraine

10. Caracas, Venezuela

While some cities on this list are shaped by active conflict or political collapse, Lagos’ inclusion is rooted in a silent crisis: the slow erosion of basic livability despite economic growth and global visibility.

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Why Lagos Is Ranked So Low

1. Explosive Growth, Zero Planning

With an estimated 17 million residents, Lagos is growing faster than nearly any city on Earth. But its growth is unmanaged. Every day, thousands migrate from rural Nigeria and neighboring countries to Lagos in search of opportunity. The city, however, offers little preparation in return.

The result is a city overstretched — from housing and transportation to sewage and schooling. Slums continue to mushroom while infrastructure stagnates.

2. Power, Water, Waste: The Trifecta of Failure

Despite its reputation as a tech hub and economic powerhouse, Lagos’ basic services routinely fail:

• Electricity: Power cuts are daily and widespread, with residents relying heavily on expensive diesel generators.

• Water: Public water supply reaches less than 20% of homes, forcing most to depend on private boreholes or vendors.

• Sanitation: Piles of uncollected waste line streets. Drainage systems are clogged. Flooding is seasonal and deadly.

3. Transport That Breaks the Spirit

Lagos traffic isn’t a meme — it’s an economic and psychological drain. Commuters spend an average of 4–6 hours daily in traffic, and public transport options are chaotic, unreliable, and dangerous.

Ambitious transport projects like the Lagos Blue Rail Line are years behind schedule or underfunded, while the city continues to depend on yellow buses (danfo), kekes, and okadas to move millions.

4. Healthcare and Education Gaps

Access to quality healthcare is a privilege, not a right. Public hospitals are under-resourced and overcrowded, while private clinics are prohibitively expensive for most.

In education, government schools face teacher shortages, dilapidated buildings, and overcrowding, while elite private schools operate in a different reality altogether. The result is a deep urban divide, where opportunity is gated by income.

5. Urban Inequality and Informality

The Lagos story is one of dual cities:

• Lekki, Victoria Island, and Ikoyi shine with tech parks, skyscrapers, and gated estates.

• Ajegunle, Makoko, and Agege groan under the weight of poverty, informality, and disrepair.

Despite GDP growth, this inequality hollows out the city’s core, eroding trust, mobility, and unity.

Comparing Crisis: What Sets Lagos Apart

While cities like Damascus (#1) and Kyiv (#9) are battling active war zones, and Caracas (#10) is mired in political and economic collapse, Lagos is different — and arguably more frustrating.

It has wealth, people, talent, and global attention. Yet its problems are not due to scarcity, but decades of poor governance, weak institutions, and a disconnect between leadership and public reality.

In short: Lagos didn’t fall — it was allowed to decay.

Photo Credit: Pinterest

What the Ranking Means for Africa’s Urban Future

That three African cities (Lagos, Tripoli, Harare) make the global bottom 10 is deeply concerning. Africa is rapidly urbanizing — by 2050, more than half the continent’s population will live in cities.

If urban centers are not planned with resilience, inclusivity, and sustainability, we are not just facing traffic jams and pollution. We are facing widening inequality, urban poverty, and disillusioned generations.

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How Lagos Can Turn the Tide

1. Redesign Infrastructure Around People

Build for the bottom 80%, not the top 10%. Prioritize mass housing, reliable power, clean water, and sustainable transport — not just luxury real estate and vanity projects.

2. Localize Governance

Empower local governments and communities to plan, allocate resources, and monitor progress in real time.

3. Close the Inequality Gap

Support informal communities with formal policies: land titles, sanitation services, education programs, and small business grants.

4. Integrate Climate Planning

With Lagos facing worsening floods and sea-level rise, resilience must be baked into urban policy, from drainage to green spaces.

Conclusion: Liveability Is a Right, Not a Luxury

Photo Credit: Pinterest

Lagos' place at No. 6 on the 2025 Least Liveable Cities List is more than a data point; it’s a reflection of deep urban failure. But it’s also a call to action.

Cities are not just places; they are promises. The promise of protection, opportunity, and dignity. For now, Lagos is breaking that promise to too many of its people. But with bold reform, transparent governance, and people-first planning, it doesn’t have to stay this way.

Because for a city that pulses with so much life, Lagos deserves to be liveable, not just survivable.

Featured Image Credit: Pinterest